I’m not usually one to give in to the hype, but after almost missing out on The Kiss Quotient, until the very last moment, I couldn’t risk it with this book. And man! This book was worth the hype. The female friendships and the hero brought to his knees just by the heroines existence? #youneedthisbooknow #justtrustme

Marlee thought she scored the man of her dreams only to be scorched by a bad breakup. But there’s a new player on the horizon, and he’s in a league of his own…

Marlee Harper is the perfect girlfriend. She’s definitely had enough practice by dating her NFL-star boyfriend for the last ten years. But when she discovers he has been tackling other women on the sly, she vows to never date an athlete again. There’s just one problem: Gavin Pope, the new hotshot quarterback and a fling from the past, has Marlee in his sights.

Gavin fights to show Marlee he’s nothing like her ex. Unfortunately, not everyone is ready to let her escape her past. The team’s wives, who never led the welcome wagon, are not happy with Marlee’s return. They have only one thing on their minds: taking her down. But when the gossip makes Marlee public enemy number one, she worries about more than just her reputation.

Between their own fumbles and the wicked wives, it will take a Hail Mary for Marlee and Gavin’s relationship to survive the season.

| Book Review |

The release of Intercepted by Alexa Martin has generated a lot of hype. And for good reason. This was such an entertaining read; I can see myself being friends with someone like Marlee who takes life seriously only when need be. The friends she chooses are women who like to build each other up and have each other’s backs come hell or high water. The catty WAGs on the other hand…they are a whole different breed of women. And yeah. They were mean and give women a bad name, but the fact is, there are women out there like that, and Marlee does a good job holding her own and getting some digs in. Her interactions with them were at times hilarious, and at times made me so angry on her behalf. These women were as serious as their place in the WAGs hierarchy as their men were about their positions on the team. A huge highlight for me was Marlee and Gavin’s relationships with their families. Both were close to them, and it was nice to see that they each had a solid support system. I thought the pacing was good, and I loved the use of the hashtags in this book! #theyremindedmeabitofJoefromYOU #butwithoutthecrazy #wellmostly There was a fantastical quality to this book in that Gavin was the perfect man. Everything you’d ever want in a man…Gavin has it. He’s sexy as hell and so polite, but man when things get tough, he’s going to go to the wall for you.

There were a few things that I had a hard time with, but the biggest for me was that once 75% hit, Gavin’s character did an about face that was not at all indicative of what we’d seen of him up until then. It was like someone took Gavin out of the game and replaced him with someone else, trying to pass them off as Gavin. And it just didn’t sit well with me. Also, Marlee was so focused on doing everything on her own that she never realized she didn’t have to. And it didn’t feel like a very becoming character trait. It felt more like stubbornness than character growth to me. The last thing is Gavin’s adoration of Marlee. I loved this – absolutely loved it. But I also couldn’t help but wonder where it came from. This is one of those times when an author relies on a previous encounter to explain their current attraction, but the previous encounter wasn’t fleshed out enough to carry that.

Having said that, I think Intercepted was so much fun, I think the author is a fantastic writer; I’m with this series until the end. Solid female friendships and the family characters can rely on – that’s something I feel has been missing from this genre and Alexa Martin definitely filled that reader need in me. Oh, and TK…yeah. We met him in this book and holy smokes…I’m already in love. #bringiton

| Rating |

Series Reading Order

| Excerpt |

The idea of Gavin showing up to my family home sets the butterflies in my stomach free. I have to remind myself he doesn’t remember me, he’s just being friendly to a teammate’s girlfriend. End of story.

“Don’t you wish. Chris isn’t even promised a seat. Quarterback or not, my family doesn’t share well when it comes to pasta.”

“Well, I’m awesome, and Chris is questionable. Your family would love me.”

“Maybe they could find a seat for you, but I’m not sure the room is big enough for your ego to tag along.” I ignore the jab at Chris, handing Gavin the final plate.

“Damn. You got jokes?” He acts insulted, but there’s a smile on his face when he says it. I shrug it off and give him a hand towel. I tend to forget not everybody knows my sense of humor. Something I should try harder to remember when it concerns my boyfriend’s coworkers.

He hands me the last plate to dry, and his fingers graze mine. The contact is so minimal, I shouldn’t have noticed it. But when it comes to Gavin, I notice everything. “Thanks for helping, but I really do have work to finish.”

I hang the towel from the stove and try to play it cool. I’m not a relationship expert or anything, but I’m pretty sure I’ve watched enough reality shows to know crushing on your boyfriend’s coworker is generally a no-no.

“TK told me you did his website. I checked it out and it looks fantastic. Are you taking on new clients?”

When I turn away from the stove and face him, he’s in the same spot, watching me with what I think is either curiosity, mistrust, or kindness.

Yes, I’m aware those are all different, but I’ve never been very good at reading people.

“Always. It’s rare for me to ever turn down a client.” I look for something else in the kitchen to keep me busy.

“Good, because my website needs an overhaul since I switched teams.”

Oh no. Not gonna happen. Seeing him on occasion is one thing, but working for him is on a whole other level of asking for trouble.

“Your website? Didn’t you already have somebody design your website?” I scramble for any excuse to say no. “I doubt you need a new one, just a few tweaks, and I don’t like messing with other people’s work.”

“You just said you didn’t turn down a client. I want a new website. I’ll have Madison email you some pictures of me in Mustangs gear and shots of my charity events.”

Oh lovely, Gavin and Madison. This keeps getting better and better.

“Your girlfriend is your secretary? How very old-school.”

“Madison isn’t my girlfriend. She’s an old friend who happens to work in PR.” He shakes his head, acting like the idea of him with the leggy beauty is outrageous. “Think about it for me. I’d really appreciate it, and I promise to recommend you to everyone I know.”

Dammit. Doing this would be huge for me. I got my degree in graphic design from the Art Institute five years ago and started doing some freelance work to keep me busy. Business has been growing slowly over the past five years . . . which is fine. Chris gets all offended when I offer to pay for anything so I shovel all my money into savings and paying off my student loans.

I graduated with my masters in marketing last spring and have spent all summer (unsuccessfully) trying to find an adult job complete with medical. Unfortunately for me, the closest I got to medical was the marijuana dispensary next door to an interview I went to. So while I wait to find the apparent unicorn job I’ve spent my entire life preparing for, I might just have to build a website for my ex-fling turned current boyfriend’s coworker.

I’m about to agree when the intercom buzzes and Chris’s voice booms through the kitchen. “Marlee, can you go find Pope for us?” he asks. He hangs up before I have the chance to answer.

“I guess that’s my cue.” Gavin starts walking out of the kitchen but stops before he makes it all the way out. “By the way, I think you dropped this.” He pulls something small out of his pocket, tosses it to me, and is gone before I even realize what I’m holding.

My grandma’s necklace. The one my mom gave me after she passed.

The one I lost four years ago in a Chicago apartment.

Holy shit.

He kept it?

Holy shit.

He remembers me!

| about the author |

Alexa Martin is a writer and stay at home mom. She lives in Colorado with her husband, a former NFL player who now coaches at the high school where they met, their four children, and a German shepherd. Her first book, Intercepted, was inspired by the eight years she spent as an NFL wife. Visit her online at Facebook.com/AlexaMBooks and @AlexMBooks.

5 thoughts on “ARC Review + Excerpt | Intercepted by Alexa Martin”

It was a fun and light yet not too fluffy one. I was not a hashtag fan, but I did laugh a few times at her use of them. I didn’t bring it out, but I agree that she did seem to be clinging onto her independence so hard for a while there. Oh yeah, there are some ugly-acting women out there and I’m glad I didn’t have anything like Marlee’s experience.
Great review as usual. 🙂

I can’t wait to read this one….I understand about hyped up books and I almost made the mistake of not reading the Kiss Quotient and I would have missed out. So I also don’t want to regret it on this one. Plus a football romance by an author that knows it personally. 🙂